Policy on Confidentiality of Student Educational Records

Overview/Rationale

Medical student educational records are deemed confidential and only made available to medical school faculty and administration with a specific educational interest or when a student provides consent. 

Accreditation Standards

LCME Accreditation Standard:

11.5 Confidentiality of Student Educational Records

11.6 Student Access to Educational Records

Stakeholders

Medical Students, Staff and Faculty

Policy: (Includes definitions and policy) 

Medical student educational records are deemed confidential and only made available to medical school faculty and administration with a specific educational interest or when a student provides consent. Faculty and administrators who have full direct access to student records include the following: 

  • Dean 

  • Vice Dean for Education 

  • Associate Dean for Student Affairs, Support & Services 

  • Associate Dean for Student Career Development 

  • Senior Director of Student Affairs 

  • Executive assistant to the Associate Deans for Student Affairs 

  • Associate Dean for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging 

  • Associate/Assistant Deans for Admissions 

  • Sr/Director of Admissions 

  • Senior Associate Dean for Curriculum 

  • Sr/Director of Curriculum 

  • Associate Dean for Student Research 

  • Advisory Deans 

  • Executive assistant to the Associate Deans for Student Affairs 

  • Center for Educational Research and Evaluation staff 

Additional members of the faculty or administration, who are asked to provide letters of recommendation, are provided access to a student’s educational record only with the written permission of the student, sent to the Senior/Director of Student Affairs. 

VP&S uses a suite of online tools (e.g., OASIS, ExamSoft, B-line, Qualtrics, iSeek, Microsoft PowerBI, NBME portal, Acuity Insights Analytics, AAMC and ACGME data portals) to manage the curriculum, assessments and student data. Permissions to access student data in these systems are set by the Office of Education on a need-to-know basis, most commonly limited by course, clerkship or phase of the curriculum. Each of these systems has been reviewed by and meet the requirements of the security protocols established by CUIMC Information Technology and CU Information Technology. 

Official transcripts are maintained by the Registrar of Columbia University. 

Student educational records do not contain any student medical records. These are maintained independently by the Columbia University Irving Medical Center Student Health Service. 

Students may meet with the course director to discuss/challenge assessments such as examination performance, OSCE performance, or narrative assessments. If the student wishes to contest the assessment further, they can meet with the senior associate dean for curricular affairs. 

In accordance with LCME Element 11.6, medical students have the right to review and challenge their educational records, including the Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE). The MSPE (“Dean’s Letter”) is an evaluative document, not a recommendation letter, and provides residency program directors with an objective summary of a student’s attributes, experiences, and academic performance. At VP&S, the MSPE is prepared for all senior students by the Associate Dean for Student Career Development, with support from the Assistant Deans for Student Affairs (Advisory Deans) and Student Affairs staff, and is signed by the Associate Dean for Student Affairs, Support & Services. If a student believes the Associate Dean for Student Career Development cannot prepare the letter in an unbiased manner, they may request that the narrative sections be written by a faculty member outside the Office of Medical Education; Dr. Rebecca Kurth currently serves in this role, and her contact information is provided annually to students. 

 

Draft MSPEs are shared with students prior to release, and students may review them for factual accuracy. Noteworthy Characteristics may be revised at the student’s discretion, within length and format limits. Appeals of grades or narrative assessments must follow the Grade Appeal Policy, and the MSPE reflects final decisions of the Academic Appeals Subcommittee. Final MSPEs are prepared in the format recommended by the AAMC MSPE Task Force (2017) and are released to residency programs on the official AAMC/ERAS date. 

View the Records Authorization Form(link is external and opens in a new window) (PDF). 

Policy History/ Approval Date: Policy History/ Approval Date:  

The policy on confidentiality of student records was taken from print-version student handbooks and online formats.  These documents were reformatted and codified into policy where specific procedures and edits were added.  The policy was reviewed and approved by the Committee on Educational Policy and Curriculum on December 20, 2024, Administrative Edit July, 2025, Updated Policy September 12, 2025.